Fegans Old Boy: Roger O
Roger O (No 2)
Roger was born on 25th September, 1939, in Hackney. At just a few weeks old, his mother put him into a Workhouse.
It is believed there was some hope that he would be adopted, but this sadly fell through when the prospective parents and authorities learned of his mother’s lies and her submission of false information.
Roger was in the care of Mr Fegan’s Homes for ten years. His Fegan’s journey started at Yardley Gobion in 1946 and after four years he was moved to Stony Stratford and spent the final two years at Buxted. Following this Roger moved in with a family and worked on an apple and sheep farm. He recalls “I went into a family environment; it was a very happy time”. He was made redundant in 1985. Keen to use his skills, he worked as a self-employed gardener until he retired.
Roger had four younger half-brothers and half-sisters. He was aware of their existence, but he recalls that his mother refused to tell them about him. Apparently she made many promises, but they weren’t fulfilled. Roger didn’t marry, and says “No girl fancied me enough to commit – WISE GIRLS – ha ha”. However, the daughter of the family he was ‘put out’ to when he left Fegans, regards him as her brother. All her offspring call him ‘uncle’ which he finds “rather lovely”.
Roger recalls his Fegans days; he was ‘No 2’ and says he will never forget – second on the left, going into the wash room. He admits to not being a good scholar and was too busy winding up the teachers!! When asked what mischief he got up to, he suggested that we would need ten foolscap pages to write it all down!
Roger’s memories of some of the staff at Fegans:
Captain F A sheer genius with boys…… utmost respect.
Mum P. F The hardest working woman I have ever seen.
Mr. P. C So strict, but very fair, could spot you a mile away if you were up to mischief!
Mr. A. O. D Replaced Mr C as my Housemaster …
Robert recalls the boys had ideas of giving him the run-around, but with no luck!!
Captain F took Robert and another lad to see Luton v. Bournemouth in about 1952/53. It was the first time Robert had seen a professional football match and he recalls it clearly as a ‘memorable day out’.
Life wasn’t always easy at Fegans as all boys had their chores to do. In Robert’s words: “You name it, we did it”. He remembers scrubbing the passage which was about 100 yards long EVERY morning, BEFORE school! There were ten boys doing this, but what a chore!
There was however time for games and Robert remembers playing football, cricket, hockey, table tennis and swimming in the orphanage pool.
There were some sad experiences: Roger recalls Mr N B as being a 'vile and abusive man'. He belted a young boy of about 8 or 9 from the top to the bottom of the stairs with a 3 inch buckled belt. The child was naked too and Roger remembers the screams of sheer terror which he will never forget. He also recalls Mr G M, who was 'inept and useless!' At Buxted, Mr M received a message from HQ to cut down on the use of electricity. Roger and his colleagues would finish work at 5pm in the winter and the 'mains' would be turned off at 6pm - maybe not such a good idea!
Roger now lives in Northiam, East Sussex and his outstanding memory of his time at Fegans is "the camaraderie, which still remains today, among the boys who are left".
Roger O (May, 2016)
We are proud to have worked with children and families for more than 150 years.
In both our Spurgeons and our Fegans children's homes we were able to give amazing opportunities to children in their time of greatest need. We were proud to be there for them when their families couldn't be.
These stories are part of our historical record, and we acknowledge that some of the approaches of the time to disciplining the children which features in these stories, whilst common practice at this time, are no longer acceptable. However, after careful consideration, we feel it is both honouring and transparent to include all the boys' experiences in the stories they have chosen to share with us.
If you have been impacted by the content in these stories, or you just have questions about your or a close family member's time in our homes please do be in touch with our supporter care team.
